Songs of Silence
by Ninjalinda
Summary: Taking place before the live-action movie "Asterix at the Olympic Games", including some characters from the movie. Centurion Silenceus gets his tongue cut by Brutus and then banned from the roman camp for 5 days, he ends up in the gaulish village... among the enemy. Rated M for future chapters. Cover image by Susan Hawkins:
1. Chapter 1

Authors note: I don't own any of the canon characters of Asterix the gaul. They all belong to Dargaud, Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo. I do own Blanche and any other characters I've made up for the story. This story is based off the characters of the live action movie "Asterix at the Olympic Games", but isn't about that story. It just has some of the same characters, such as Silenceus and Brutus.

Songs of Silence

By Ninjalinda

Chapter 1

The young centurion swallowed hard as Brutus took some carefully calculated steps towards him, narrowing his eyes. The silence in the room was eerie, he couldn't hear anything else than his own heartbeats, they were hard and fast, and he wondered if anyone else could hear them too.

"I trusted you not to speak a word about this to anyone, Silenceus!" Brutus started, stopping in front of him. "Yet, you couldn't keep your mouth shut, could you? No! Don't speak until I tell you to!" Brutus raised his hands to stop him from talking, even though he hadn't even opened his mouth.

He clenched his teeth together, trying to keep them from making noise as he was shivering.

"You're lucky Tenacius didn't talk to my father about this! My plans would have been completely wasted then!" Brutus pulled out a feather from the centurion's helmet, crumbling it up between his fingers to show how unhappy he was about him. "I would have killed you if it had gone that far!"

One of the other centurions in the room shifted weight from one leg to the other, the armor made a faint noise. Then everything was quiet again. Silenceus kept his stare straight forward, nailing it to the red fabric on the wall. He had no idea what would happen now, or if he would even live to see another day.

"But…" Brutus paced a little back and forth. "… I like you. You've been a loyal and good centurion. I don't want to get rid of you. Yet, I cannot let this pass!"

Silenceus dared to take a deep breath; he had been holding it for too long. At least he wasn't going to die.

"I sentence you to 100 lashes and ban you to live in the forest for 5 days! You may bring 4 legionnaires with you, but other than that you won't receive any support from the Roman Empire. You are not allowed to contact us during this ban. After the 5 days, you will return to this camp to serve your duty as before."

Caesars step-son rubbed a hand over his chin as if he was in deep thought. "Still… I feel this isn't enough." Then he turned his back to Silenceus, looking at the soldiers guarding the room.

"Tenacius!" Brutus shouted, calling one of the other centurions to him. The centurion walked over, keeping his stare to the floor. Nobody wanted to provoke Brutus any further when he was in such mood.

"Cut his tongue out!" Brutus commanded, pointing a finger at Silenceus.

"No! Please! I beg for mercy!" Silenceus protested, desperately. "I'll do anything! Degrade me to legionnaire instead! But not this!"

"Quiet!" Brutus shouted, making the other centurions jump by the sharp voice. "Tenacius! Cut his tongue out!"

By the snap of Brutus' fingers, a number of soldiers stepped forward and grabbed Silenceus, holding him down in the table in the middle of the room, forcing his jaw open. He screamed, terrified as Tenacius came towards him, unable to move his eyes from the sharp steel in the other centurion's hand. His scream escalated into a loud howl, echoing through the camp. Then everything went black, soft and calm black. He didn't even notice them dragging him outside the camp after the lashes, dumping him brutally in the soft grass by the forest-line. Some legionnaires sat down by him, not at all happy about having to stay outside the camp without any supplies for days. But still, their loyality to their unconscious centurion made them stay by his side.

To be continued…


	2. Chapter 2

Authors note: I don't own any of the canon characters of Asterix the gaul. They all belong to Dargaud, Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo. I do own Blanche and any other characters I've made up for the story. This story is based off the characters of the live action movie "Asterix at the Olympic Games", but isn't about that story. It just has some of the same characters, such as Silenceus and Brutus.

Songs of Silence

By Ninjalinda

Chapter 2

As the sun went down, the legionnaires moved deeper into the forest in search for food. Two of them were carrying the unconscious Silenceus between them. They stopped on a hill, overlooking the gaulish village.

"We shouldn't go any closer." One of them mumbled.

"Agreed. Those are the ones with that magic potion… we'll end up as wall decorations if they see us."

The last two arrived, dropping the centurion carelessly on the ground.

"Let's go see if we can find some berries or something to eat." One of the soldiers suggested as he stretched his back after carrying his boss around for so long. "Centurion Silenceus won't wake up in a while. He'll be fine just here and we won't go far."

With those words, they left Silenceus in search for something edible.

As they disappeared between the threes, Getafix climbed down from a nearby three with a basket full of newly harvested herbs. He stopped in front of the unconscious roman, leaning forward to have a closer look, frowning as he saw the blood running from the roman's mouth. He put a hand on his forehead, it was warm. Too warm. The centurion was burning with fever.

"He could use some mixture to keep any infections away…" he mumbled, but shrugged. Vitalstatistix would never allow him to help the enemy, even though the chief was against killing. The villagers were only allowed to knock them out, but never kill anyone.

In the same moment, he heard footsteps and the metallic sound of roman armor, he ran for the village, leaving the romans behind.

"I've noticed a small group of romans near our village…?" one of the guards said as he approached.

"Yes, but it's nothing to worry about. They seem to be picking berries." Getafix replied, not seeing these romans as a threat. "Just keep an eye on them. If they start acting weird, blow the horn. I'll keep a cauldron with some magic potion ready. Just in case."

Getafix walked to his house, putting all the herbs on the table, sorting them into separate jars for storage. Then he lit a fire under his cauldron and made sure it was burning properly before he went to get the ingredients for his potion.

"Good afternoon, Getafix!" Asterix greeted as the druid was on his way to the well to get water.

"Oh, good afternoon, Asterix!" Getafix smiled as he lowered the bucket into the well.

"I heard some romans are roaming our forest…?" The little gaul said, scratching the back of his head.

"Yes, but they don't seem to be out to get us, so we're just keeping an eye on them for now."

"Right." Asterix nodded. "Let me help you with those buckets, druid!"

Getafix was more than happy to let the younger man carry them, the age had started to take its toll on him. "Thank you. I'm going to make some potion, just in case."

"Better to be safe than sorry." Asterix said as he lifted the buckets and started walking to the druid's house. "You never know what the romans are up to. They are crazy."

Getafix just nodded, thinking back at the centurion lying in the tall grass by the forest-line. He wouldn't last long if the romans didn't go back to their camp soon. The medics should take care of him. The druid pulled a hand over his beard. Why had those romans gone on patrol when their centurion was so ill? It made no sense.

He looked out the window as Asterix walked back down the path to the well, getting more water for him. Then he shrugged, turning back to preparing the ingredients for the potion, even though he knew the romans were not likely to attack when their leader was disabled.

Asterix glanced over to the forest-line as he walked beside Obelix towards the forest. They were going for a wild boar-hunt.

The romans had lit a fire, sitting around it. They looked rather passive and helpless.

Asterix frowned. "They have been here for two days now… what are they up to?"

Obelix held a hand over his eyes to protect them from the sun as he stared in the direction of the romans. "I can go get rid of them!"

"No, no, no! Leave them alone. They don't seem to have any plans to attack anyway."

"But it would be fun…"

"We don't beat up people just for fun, Obelix!"

"Yes, we do…"

Asterix sighed. "Only when they attack us first…"

Obelix shrugged, walking into the forest. His mind was set on wild boars anyway. The romans didn't seem to go anywhere, so he could get them later.

The legionnaires kept a close eye on the two gauls as they entered the forest, but lost interest pretty soon. They felt exhausted and out of spirit after two days with too little food. Luckily, they had found a small stream, so they could get water, but they didn't have any luck with hunting or harvesting berries.

And their centurion still hadn't woken up. They had collected some soft moss and laid him on it, to make it more comfortable. Their leader was not well, it was obvious. He was burning from fever, sweating and shivering at the same time. Sometimes he made noises, as if he was talking in his sleep, but nothing made sense to any of the soldiers. Instead they were looking forward to the punishment to end. It was only three days left now.

Silenceus twitched a bit. His breathing was fast and irregular now. One of the legionnaires put two fingers on the centurion's wrist to check the pulse. It was weak and fast.

"I don't think he'll last three more days, guys." He mumbled.

"What can we do?" Another muttered, feeling all discouraged.

"Brutus will kill us all if he loses his loyal servant." A legionnaire said as he put more wood on the fire. His voice was dripping of dismay, he had never liked this centurion. If he hadn't risked his own life, he would have left his leader here to die.

"We can't go back to our camp either. They will kill us if we come back before time."

The first legionnaire sighed and rested his head in his hands. "We'll die no matter what we do… if centurion Silenceus dies, we'll be killed. If we go get him some help, we'll be killed. We're doomed, guys."

A soldier leaning on his shield, turned to them. "We have one last option…"

Everyone turned to him.

He pointed towards the village. "We could ask them for help…"

The others slumped low, totally discouraged. "We're doomed. There is no way they would help us. Forget it."

"Couldn't hurt to ask…"

"Oh, yes, it WILL!"

The legionnaire leaned on his shield again, staring at the village. He sighed.

Inside the village, a gaulish woman named Blanche, looked out of the gates, staring at the romans with concern. "Why are they still here?"

Getafix, sitting on a bench outside his house, looked up. "Their centurion is ill. My guess is that they won't leave his side."

"Oh." Blanche looked back at the romans. A thin tread of smoke rose from their campfire, but there wasn't much enthusiasm and life to spot over there. They all seemed to be waiting. For their centurion to die, she guessed. How sad… being a legionnaire, crushed under their leaders heel until he died. Only then would they be allowed to leave his side. Probably just to be put under another centurion. What a pitiful life they lived, those romans. "I hope they'll be gone soon. Having them around makes me nervous…" she muttered.

"Oh, it won't last long… I got a look at him two days ago." Getafix mumbled. Somehow the thought of just ignoring someone dying felt painful, even though it was their enemy.

"Please, I don't want to hear about it. I don't enjoy the thought of someone dying right outside our village… I don't want to think about it." Blanche whispered as she continued to walk towards Unhygienix to buy some not-so-fresh fish.

Then a movement outside caught her eye. One of the romans approached the village, with careful steps, as if he was nervous.

"The romans are coming!" Cacofonix voice yelled from his tree house.

The response came immediately, all the villagers gathered right inside the gate, ready to attack.

"There is only one…" Fullyautomatix muttered in dismay, he had been hoping for a huge fight.

The roman had stopped by the sight of the villagers, hiding behind his shield. Then he seemed to gather some courage to move forward.

"I am not attacking!" he yelled, dropping his spear and shield, holding his hands visible.

Vitalstatistix made his shield bearers move forward, stopping in front of the roman.

"What do you want, roman?" he said as he looked down at the legionnaire.

"Our centurion is dying…" the roman started. "We need help…"

"Then go back to your own camp! You're not welcome here!"

"We can't… we're banned for three more days. We'll get killed if we go back."

"I'm not going to ask why, but what makes you think we would help our enemy?" Vitalstatistix leaned forward, almost falling off the shield.

The roman didn't have any answer for that, he just looked down and then turned his back to them. Walking away with hunched shoulders, as if all hope was lost.

"It was worth a try…" was all they heard as they watched him walk away.

Vitalstatistix looked at the sad roman as he walked back to his companions. Then he looked at his wife, Impedimenta. She looked up at him in dismay. "Darling… we can't turn soft and go on helping our enemies. We can't!" he insisted. "Whole of Gaule will laugh of me!"

Impedimenta crossed her arms and walked away, looking very displeased. Vitalstatistix sat down on his shield, sighing. His wife was sure a handful, and now she would be angry at him for days.

The sun went down, the legionnaires sat around the campfire. Silenceus had been awake for a few minutes, trying to get up, but collapsed again shortly after from both exhaustion and blood loss. Surely enough, the infected wounds didn't make the situation any better.

One of the legionnaires had managed to get some drops of water into the centurion's mouth before he dropped unconscious again.

"He's going to die anyway. And guess who will be punished for it…" one of the romans mumbled.

"Us." Another replied.

"I have an idea!" a third one shouted.

"We're listening…."

"If we manage to get him into the village, we could return to the camp. We'll just tell Brutus that the gauls captured him, but we managed to get away. And when he dies in the village, the gauls will be blamed for it!" the legionnaire explained enthusiastic.

"Not a bad idea… but how do we manage to sneak into the village without being seen?"

"Other romans have done it before us, so why can't we? If two of us carry Centurion Silenceus, the two other distracts the guards… and we'll smuggle him into the village and run before anyone gets us."

A smile ran over the other legionnaires faces. The idea was worth a try, worst case scenario only meant being beaten up again. It was better than being killed by Brutus.

"Let's go for it!"

The two guards at the village ran towards the north side of the village, there was obviously something happening there. Someone was trying to knock down the north wall.

As soon as they disappeared behind the nearest house, the two romans carried their centurion as fast as they could through the gates, quickly dumping him in the open space in the middle of the village.

"Run!" They whispered to each other and ran head over heels back the way they came. Nobody had even noticed them, the village was as quiet as before.

The guards shrugged as they walked back to their posts, there had been nothing to see at the north side, but they took a walk along the fence, just to be on the safe side. Of course making them unaware of the unexpected visitor lying in the town square…

To be continued…


	3. Chapter 3

Authors note: I don't own any of the canon characters of Asterix the gaul. They all belong to Dargaud, Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo. I do own Blanche and any other characters I've made up for the story. This story is based off the characters of the live action movie "Asterix at the Olympic Games", but isn't about that story. It just has some of the same characters, such as Silenceus and Brutus.

Songs of Silence

By Ninjalinda

Chapter 3

A loud female scream awakened the village the following day. Bacteria came running through the village screaming in panic, flailing her arms.

"There is a roman in our village!"

Blanche looked after the older woman as she passed her, frowning. Shortly after, all the citizens came running to the square, forming a wide circle around the roman soldier lying on the ground.

Blanche shuddered as she stared at the man, he was badly wounded, it wasn't hard to see. It had to be the centurion Getafix had mentioned.

"Should I wake him up?" Obelix suggested, taking a step forward. Asterix stopped him.

"I'll do it. We need to ask him what he's doing here, not beat him up."

Asterix walked over to the roman, shaking his shoulder gently. "Wake up, Roman!"

"How did he manage to get in unseen?" Vitalstatistix wondered, glaring at the guards.

"By Teutatis!" Impedimenta gasped as the roman tried to stand up, revealing a pool of blood under him. He coughed, not able to sit up fully, only holding himself up by his arms. Fresh blood streamed from his mouth, increasing the pool on the ground. Then he collapsed again, breathing heavy, but still awake.

Blanche caught a glimpse of his eyes, they were wide open and full of fear. He was probably just as scared as they were, being all alone among the enemy.

"What are you doing here, Roman?" Vitalstatistix demanded an answer.

The centurion tried to lift his head, but in vain. A series of weird noises came from him, followed by coughing.

"Speak louder! We can't hear you!"

The roman clenched his teeth together and squeezed his eyes shut, as if it pained him to even try talking. He placed a hand on the ground, trying to lift himself up again. Slipping in the blood, he fell back again, this time unconscious.

"Let's just throw him out of the village. We don't want a roman to die in here, do we?" someone yelled.

"Put him out of his misery!" another one shouted from the back of the crowd.

"Kill him on the spot!"

"Let's knock him all the way back to the roman camp where he belong!"

Some of the villagers walked towards the motionless roman on the ground, drawing their swords.

"Stop it!" Impedimenta threw herself between the centurion and the villagers. "We have never had a tradition for killing anyone! So we are not going to start now, are we?" she looked up at Vitalstatistix with a provocative stare.

He looked back down at her. "No. There will be no killing of people inside this village's walls! Never has been and never will be!" he stated.

Asterix stepped forward, standing beside Impedimenta, showing his support. Obelix followed shortly after, then Getafix, Cacofonix, Unhygienix and Fullautomatix.

"So, let's carry him outside then!" one of the guards said, while putting his sword back. "We'll finish him there instead."

"No!" Impedimenta placed her hands on her waist, looking at everyone with a firm look. "We are going to help him. Let's not sink to the roman's level by killing everyone that doesn't share the same values as us!"

Asterix nodded. "We're better than that. Let's prove to the romans that we're not as barbaric as they accuse us for being."

Blanche walked over to the centurion, sitting down on the ground, placing his head on her lap, she had started to feel sorry for the roman. "I am with Impedimenta and Asterix on this."

The men in the crowd started to argue loudly, some against and some for the idea. It was about to evolve to a huge fight, as Vitalstatistix raised his hands.

"QUIET!" he shouted, getting everyone to stop at once.

He looked down at his wife, who stared back with an opposing look on her face.

"This roman is allowed to stay until he either dies or get well enough to return to his own people." He told his village, then turning to his wife again. "But… I am not happy about it, dear. And you are in charge of his care, you may bring Asterix and Blanche with you, just to avoid staying alone with him. You never know what these romans might do to you… but do not expect any support from anyone else! Nobody is going to be forced or ordered to help you out. You are on your own. And… Getafix; I forbid you to brew any potion to help this roman stay alive!" He pointed to a house in the back of the village. "The roman can stay in the empty house near the big tree."

Impedimenta nodded. "Fine with me!"

Blanche looked up at her and whispered. "I'll help out whenever I can. I've got nothing else to kill time with."

"Thanks, Blanche." Impedimenta smiled to her. "Let's get this roman into the house and have a look at his wounds." She searched for Getafix with her eyes, and met his stare. The druid made a faint nod. He would brew some mixtures in secrecy.

Vitalstatistix ordered two men to help carry the centurion to the empty house. They stepped forward, grabbing the roman by the arms and legs, carrying him through the village.

Impedimenta and Blanche followed hot on track.

"Asterix." Impedimenta said, glanching sideways at the blonde gaul. "I need some clean towels, water, firewood, a cauldron, blankets and something that can be used as bandages."

"I'm on it." Asterix walked away to get what she had requested.

Inside the house, the men threw the roman into the bed rather reckless.

"That was not necessary!" Impedimenta scolded them. "Get out of here!"

As soon as they had left, Asterix came back along with Obelix, dropping off the items she had asked for. "We'll be right outside if you need us." Then they both left, leaving the two women alone with the roman soldier.

"Ok… this will be a lot of work, hun. Let's get started!"

Blanche put another piece of wood on the fire, then checking if the water was hot enough.

"The water is almost done, Impedimenta."

"Good. Now, help me get this armor off." Impedimenta has started untie the straps that kept the armor in place, starting with the leg armor. "We need to get everything off, to see how bad this is."

Blanche nodded, removing the feathered helmet. She placed it carefully on the floor beside the bed. Then she untied the bracers. "Why is his armor black? The romans we usually see around here either have red or green uniforms…"

"I don't know anything more than you, Blanche."

"If he wakes up, I could ask…"

"He's roman, dear. You shouldn't count on him to answer any question from us. We're his enemies."

Blanche started to loosen the straps on the bodyarmor, but she was only able to remove the front. He was too heavy for her to lift up alone. Impedimenta helped her lift his body enough to get the backplate out. "I think we should ask Asterix for help when we're going to take his shirt off, he is too heavy for us."

Impedimenta nodded, pulling the black pants off the roman. "No wounds on his lower body. I'll just clean off the blood and it will be fine."

Asterix came in as Blanche called for him, lifting the centurion up as she pulled off the shirt. "Just hold him there until I've cleaned his back."

She took a scoop of hot water from the cauldron, putting it in a bowl. She placed it on the chair by the bedside and wet a towel in it. Then stroking it over the roman's back. He twitched by the touch, even though he wasn't conscious. Blanche gasped.

"By Teutatis! Impedimenta! Have a look at this!" she whispered pointing at the deep, long cuts across the roman's back.

"He's been lashed…" Asterix mumbled. "I wonder what he did to deserve that…"

Impedimenta shuddered. "I don't want to ponder too much about it. If the romans punished this man, then he must be a really despicable person… let's just focus on treating him instead of thinking of what kind of person we have dragged into the house, alright?"

Blanche had tears in her eyes as she cleaned the wounds, they looked so terrible, she could only imagine the pain this man had went through. The wounds were inflamed and didn't smell good. Some places she could see some yellowish pus in the wounds. He had gotten a serious infection. She finished cleaning his upper body, then covering him in bandages. "Alright, Asterix. You can put him back down now, but careful…"

Asterix followed her request and then left to stand guard outside again.

Blanche put a hand on the centurion's forehead. "He has a fever, Impedimenta."

"It's probably because of the infected wounds. He needs something to shake that off."

"But the chief forbid Getafix to brew anything for us…"

"Oh, I know Getafix. He won't let anyone suffer unnecessary." Impedimenta blinked. "He'll make us something. Trust me!"

Blanche stroked a wet towel over the centurion's face, wiping off the dirt and blood. She jumped a bit as he opened his eyes and looked at her. His eyes were dull, but he seemed to be able to focus. He looked confused, finding himself naked, alone in a house with two gaulish women. He pulled the blanket up to cover his lower body from their sight, then looking at them with fear in his eyes.

"Relax, roman. We're not hurting you. You would have been dead by now if it weren't for us." Impedimenta stated, pulling the blanket away. He was too weak to be able to hold it, so he was completely uncovered again. She wet the towel, trying to continue cleaning his legs, but he pulled them up as he crawled at the very back of the bed. "Oh come on, you're a big bad roman soldier and you're afraid of two weak gaulish girls?!"

Blanche couldn't resist a giggle by Impedimenta's ironic comment. Then she grabbed his hand. "I saw your back… who did that to you?"

The centurion looked confused, then looking at his bandages as if he didn't know he was wounded. He looked back at her, trying to speak, but only nonsense came out of his mouth. He cursed, but even that sounded like ridiculous animalistic sounds.

Blanche frowned, by his behavior. "What's you name?"

He looked at her with a sad look on his face as he once again tried to say something, but again only the weird sounds came out. He squeezed his lips together, shaking his head.

"I understand that it might be a little hard to talk right now, so just relax a little, alright? We can talk when you feel better." She said and gave him a little smile as comfort.

The centurion looked even sadder as Impedimenta forced him to lay down, he held Blanche's stare and shook his head again. Then his eyes slid shut, as he fell asleep.

"Told you he wouldn't tell you anything." Impedimenta said, finishing her job. It was a lot easier when the soldier wasn't awake.

"He tried, Impedimenta… he's just tired." Blanche insisted as she picked up the bloody clothes from the floor. "I'll get these cleaned."

The night fell over the village. Asterix was watching over the roman centurion this first night, as Blanche was sleeping on a mattress at the other side of the room, behind a curtain. She was far too shy to sleep in the same room as two men, even if she was fully dressed. He could hear her breathing heavy and slow in her sleep.

He stood up and put another piece of wood on the fire, to keep it burning. Dogmatix came through the door, sniffing around a little, before jumping into the bed, cuddling up towards the roman.

Asterix chuckled as he lifted the dog back on the floor. "He's not well, you shouldn't disturb, Dogmatix."

The small white dog snorted as he walked over to the fireplace instead, curling up in front of it.

Asterix smiled and fished out his knife to start carving on a piece of wood, just to kill some time.

He had no idea how long it had been, when he suddenly noticed that the soldier started to struggle to breathe. He quickly stood up, placing a hand on the romans forehead. It was burning, more than ever. Sweat was literally dripping from him, but at the same time he shuddered as if he was cold.

"Blanche!" Asterix shouted, waiting for her to wake up and come over.

"Yes?" Blanche looked sleepy as she pulled the curtain aside and walked over. "Oh… he's getting worse."

The roman twitched and struggled, now blood came running from his wounds again, through the bandages. And from his mouth.

Blanche bit her lip. "What do we do? I can't go get Getafix… the chief had put out guards to make sure we can't seek help from him."

Asterix shrugged, looking worried. "If this roman dies here, we'll be blamed for it… and this place will be crawling with roman legions before we know it."

At the same moment, the roman stopped breathing, falling back at the bed motionless.

The two gauls stood there for a moment, looking shocked. Then Blanche leaped forward, slamming her fist to the centurion's chest.

"Wake up! Breathe, damn roman!" she yelled.

Then she placed her lips over his, blowing air into his lungs. "Come on!" she slammed a fist on his chest again. The roman coughed and gasped for air again.

"He's not strong enough to breathe on his own…" Asterix mumbled, suddenly getting an idea. He grabbed the small bottle of magic potion he always carried with him.

"No! Asterix, are you nuts?!" Blanche yelled in protest. "He's a roman!"

"Do we have a choice?" Asterix pushed her aside and held the soldiers head up as he poured a few drops into his mouth. Then he rubbed the front of his neck to get him to swallow it, just like he had seen Getafix do to animals when he gave them medicine.

A twitch went through the roman, followed by an intense glow as he stood up and opened his eyes, flexing his muscles. Then he went back to normal, only awake and seemingly healthy. He looked around curious and confused, taking in the situation, finding himself naked and wrapped in bloody bandages. The roman frowned, looking at the two gauls. As he realized Blanche was a girl, he grabbed the blanket from the bed and wrapped around himself.

"Mmmm mmm! Mmm?"

Asterix looked at Blanche. She looked just as confused as him. Then he looked back at the roman.

"What did you say? We don't understand…"

The roman gritted his teeth, looking frustrated. He slammed a fist into the nearby closet in frustration, it broke down totally. The centurion looked surprised at the closet, then at his fist and back to the gauls.

"Don't even think about it, Roman!" Asterix said. "We gave you magic potion to prevent you from dying, but if you even try to act up I will call for me friend Obelix, and he really enjoys spanking romans…"

The roman put his hands up, to show he had no intentions of hurting anyone, only to drop the blanket. He quickly bent down to pick it up again, and then sat down on the bed.

"I'm Asterix… and this is Blanche." Asterix started to introduce them. "We found you in the village, badly wounded."

Blanche waited for the roman to say his name, but the soldier just waved a hand and looked away.

"What's your name, Centurion?" She tried again.

He looked at her and shook his head, looking away again.

"That's not a proper introduction when a lady asks you name!" Asterix came towards him, looking threatening, even though the roman was both taller and more muscular than him.

Then something happened, which none of them had expected. The centurion turned to them, looking hurt. Then he pointed at his mouth, signing a scissor with his hand, opening his mouth to reveal that his tongue was missing.

Blanche covered her mouth with her hands and took a step back. "By Belenos…"

"You're muted. Why?" Asterix couldn't hesitate to ask, even though he knew that the roman couldn't answer.

The roman slumped low and signed with a hand that he talked too much. Then the scissor-sign again.

"So, you talked about something you weren't allowed to talk about." Asterix nodded. "The lashes… did you get those because of that too?"

Now the Roman looked confused again, then touching his back with a hand, feeling the bandages. Holding the bloody hand up in front of him, looking at the gauls with his mouth halfopen in terror.

"So, you didn't know…" Asterix sat down in a chair. He felt confident that the soldier wouldn't do anything now. "I'm not going to ask anymore. We're taking care of you until you're well enough to go back to your own people. But know this; you're not welcome in this village, so watch your back. Do not wander around outside this house without me, or you'll be in deep trouble. Inside here, you're safe."

The roman nodded, looking down. Blanche took a scoop of hot water from the cauldron over the fire, putting it in a bowl to start cleaning the wounds again. The bandages needed to be replaced.

Asterix found some bread and cheese, putting it in front of the roman along with a cup of milk. The roman looked up, giving him a small, nervous smile.

"You're welcome." Asterix muttered as he sat down again, watching how the roman struggled to eat. It probably hurt because of the wound after the tongue. The centurion wet the bread in the milk to make it easier to eat, chewing it thoroughly before swallowing. It didn't take long before he was full, he drank the last of the milk before just sitting calmly watching Blanche taking the bandages off.

Blanche worked as fast as she could, not feeling very comfortable. The roman could easily take them both down if he wanted, after Asterix had given him some of the potion. But to her surprise he didn't. He sat completely still as she cleaned his wounds and putting new bandages on.

She was finished and winced as the centurion took her hand. Her heart was beating painfully hard as she closed her eyes, waiting for the pain she was sure to come. She heard Asterix draw his sword, ready to protect her.

Then she felt soft, warm skin under her palm. She dared to open her eyes again. The roman had placed her hand on his chest, over his heart. He met her stare and bowed his head down. Then he released her hand, letting her pull it back.

He had said thank you, without any word. It touched her deeply.

"You're welcome." She whispered as she walked outside to empty the bowl with the bloody water.

To be continued..


	4. Chapter 4

Authors note: I don't own any of the canon characters of Asterix the gaul. They all belong to Dargaud, Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo. I do own Blanche and any other characters I've made up for the story. This story is based off the characters of the live action movie "Asterix at the Olympic Games", but isn't about that story. It just has some of the same characters, such as Silenceus and Brutus.

Songs of Silence

By Ninjalinda

Chapter 4

Blanche hurried to the house, which they had started calling the Roman house, after a trip home to take a bath and change her clothes. In her arms she carried the centurion's armor and clothing, now smelling fresh and clean. She had let it dry over night at her place.

"Good morning!" she greeted as she walked in, finding the Roman sitting up in the bed, trying to eat some fruits Impedimenta had given him. He smiled as he saw her, the smile putting a vivid spark in his eyes.

"Feeling better today, I see." Blanche put the armor and clothes on the chair beside the bed. "I washed your clothes."

The Roman smiled and signed that he was thankful.

"At least you don't have to be all naked while there are women in the house, Roman."

Impedimenta came over, holding a small flask. "Drink this!" she commanded, handing it to the centurion. He took it and sniffed at it before he dared to take a sip. He grimaced by the harsh taste.

"Oh, don't you dare to complain, filthy roman! Our druid brews only the best medicine." The chiefs wife scolded as he handed the flask back with a rather plagued look on his face while swallowing the medicine.

Blanche couldn't resist a giggle.

Impedimenta softened a bit, putting the flask on the shelf. "It will do you good, soldier. The infection will be gone in no time."

The centurion nodded to her, signing another thank you.

Blanche put a piece of papyrus in front of him, along with a piece of coal from the fireplace. "Now! This will make it easier to communicate. Please, tell us your name."

The Roman hesitated a little before he took the coal and jotted down some letters on the paper.

"Silenceus?" Blanche read, frowning. "How ironic… I mean; was that your name before they cut your tongue too?"

Silenceus nodded and wrote some more. "I wasn't very talkative. The one time I talked too much, Brutus cut my tongue out."

"Brutus? Caesars son?!" Impedimenta gasped. "You work for him?"

Silenceus nodded, writing. "Praetorian… Brutus' bodyguard."

"Oh…"

The silence following felt intensely uncomfortable. Blanche bit her lip. If this man was Brutus' personal bodyguard, he was probably on the way to find him…

"We're in trouble…" Impedimenta stated.

Silenceus shook his head, using the coal once again. "When Romans come, let me talk to them."

Impedimenta snorted. "You? Talk…? Good one…"

Now the centurion, not used to being made fun of, slammed his fist into the table, making both the women scream in shock. Obelix rushed into the house at the same moment, he had been standing guard since Asterix went to get some sleep. He took in the situation. The two ladies were huddled together by the fireplace, while the centurion was sitting with his arms crossed with a defiant look on his face, staring out of the window.

"You want me to…" Obelix slammed his fist into his palm, motioning against the Roman.

"No no no… it's not necessary. We just had a little misunderstanding." Blanche protested and walked back to the table. Putting a hand on the centurion's arm. "Silenceus… We're sorry. We didn't mean to make fun of your… disability."

His muscles tensed up, he threw a glance at Obelix, gritting his teeth.

"Obelix… you can go." Blanche said, watching the huge man turn around, walking outside.

Impedimenta was still standing by the fireplace, but now seemingly more calm. She took a broom, starting to sweep the floor.

Silenceus sighed and rested his head in his hand, looking sad. It pained him not to be able to speak and apologise for scaring them.

"I understand… you're sorry." Blanche whispered, leaning down to look into his eyes.

He was surprised. Was this young woman able to read his thoughts?

Blanche giggled. The look on his face was priceless and made her able to read him like an open book.

"No, I'm just good at reading bodylanguage." She chuckled.

Silenceus grinned nervous and looked away a bit shy. Then he started to focus on the fruits again. It was a bit hard to swallow without a tongue, but if he chewed long enough he could manage.

Impedimenta took down a basin hanging on the wall, filling it up with hot water, then mixing in some cooler water to get the temperature right.

"The bath is ready, Roman."

Silenceus looked like he hesitated, which made Impedimenta chuckle. "No, silly. We're not going to watch. Asterix will be here instead. He just came back."

He nodded, standing up with a mild blush on his face, holding the blanket tightly wrapped around his waist.

"We'll be right outside, Roman." Impedimenta said as she took Blanche by the arm and led her outside.

He walked over to the basin, greeting Asterix who came into the room. The blonde gaul sat down by the table, keeping an eye on the roman.

The water was comfortably warm, Silenceus dropped the blanket on the floor, standing as naked as he was born into this world. He sighed in delight as he lowered himself into the water, ignoring the burning from the wounds on his back. Impedimenta had been thoughtful enough not to put soap in, or else it would have hurt a lot more.

For a long time, he just sat there, enjoying the warm water soothing his tense body. Then he took the sponge that was floating around, rubbing himself with it. Cleaning every part of his body thoroughly.

"So, Centurion. I heard Brutus cut your tongue…" Asterix said all of a sudden.

Silenceus looked up, just nodding and then signing that he didn't want to talk about it.

"It's alright…" Asterix said, leaning back, trying to come up with something to talk about, despite the fact that the Roman couldn't say a word.

"You have any family?"

Silenceus shook his head and ran a finger across his throat. His family had been killed in the war, it was the reason he had joined the Roman legion.

"So there is nobody waiting for you, or missing you…?" Asterix kept going.

The Roman looked up with a fearful look, his eyes fell on the sword beside the bed.

"Relax, Centurion. I didn't ask because I plan to kill you… just trying to keep a conversation, you know…"

Silenceus breathed out, then he stood up from the tub, looking around for a towel to dry himself with.

"Oh… They forgot to get you a towel…" Asterix looked around, searching through the closet. "One moment, I'll ask them."

He peeked out of the door, waving at the girls. "Towels?"

Impedimenta with Blanche hot on track, came marching through the door, totally unbothered by the naked man, who now desperately tried to cover his private parts while blushing deeply. Blanche on the other hand, flushed red and turned away quickly.

"Impedimenta!" Asterix scolded, but with laugh in his voice. "Show him some respect!"

"Romans don't deserve respect!" she walked straight to a chest, taking out some towels, handing them to the wet soldier.

"Asterix, help me empty this basin." Impedimenta grabbed one of the handles. Asterix took the other and together they carried it outside.

Blanche dared to turn around again, now that Silenceus had wrapped one towel around his waist, while drying his hair with the other one.

She saw him struggle to dry his scarred back, gritting his teeth in pain.

"Here, let me help." She stepped forward, taking the towel from him and started to light and carefully pushing it to his back repeatedly. His body was welltrained, just like she had expected from a Roman soldier. Though she had always wondered what they looked like underneat the armor… especially the centurions, since their armor were shaped to defined, nice muscles. Did they really look like that when they removed it too? Now she knew that this centurion did… the muscles bulged in all the right places. Without thinking, she kept wiping the towel over the rest of his body too, until she reached his chest and he stopped her with one hand. She looked up, meeting his stare. Water dripped from his darkbrown, short hair, rolling down his skin following the curves of the muscles. For a moment, they just stood there, looking at each other. Then Silenceus broke away, walking back to the bed, picking up his clothes.

"Oh… right. Let me help you put on new bandages." She hurried over.

She felt relieved when Impedimenta and Asterix came back inside, it was a bit stressful to be alone with a Roman. Without a word, she put the bandages on, then standing up to clean up the remains of his breakfast while he was getting dressed.

Asterix stood by the door, looking out. "It's lovely weather today. The others are busy outside the village… would you like to join me for a walk, Roman? Some fresh air would do you good."

Blanche turned around to encourage Silenceus, and he heart jumped as she saw him standing there, in full armor. Black tunic, leather and bodyarmor. And with his feathered helmet on and the long sword hanging in the sheath on his left side. His proud stance made the image of a brave centurion of the Roman Empire complete. He looked invincible.

Impedimenta slapped her on the back of her head to make her snap out of it.

"Pull your tongue in, girl. It's inappropriate to drool over a Roman!" she scolded, looking serious. It was totally unacceptable to even think of Romans as friends or even human beings.

"Of course… I'm sorry, Impedimenta!" Blanche blushed and looked down. She didn't even dare to look up when she heard Asterix and Silenceus leave the house.

"I warn you, Blanche. This man will only stay here until his wounds have healed and he won't need medicine anymore. After that he will not be welcome here anymore. Don't develop any friendship with him… the Romans are not our friends! They are enemies, hun. Enemies! Gauls and Romans do not get along."

Blanche nodded. "Of course. I don't like him, I want him to leave. I just stared because I have never seen a centurion close up before…"

To be continued..


	5. Chapter 5

Authors note: I don't own any of the canon characters of Asterix the gaul. They all belong to Dargaud, Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo. I do own Blanche and any other characters I've made up for the story. This story is based off the characters of the live action movie "Asterix at the Olympic Games", but isn't about that story. It just has some of the same characters, such as Silenceus and Brutus.

Songs of Silence

By Ninjalinda

Chapter 5

Asterix started to make it a habit to take a walk with the centurion every day, even though he got some suspicious glares from the other villagers. He didn't care. The Roman were soon to leave anyway, his wounds had almost fully healed. It wouldn't take long before he didn't have to take medicine or use bandages anymore.

It had been two weeks since he came to their village now, and still they hadn't seen any sign of roman legions coming to find him. Maybe they thought he was dead? Then why didn't they come to take revenge?

The gaul and the Roman walked up the small hilltop behind Getafix' house, where they could look over the fence, into the woods. On clear days they could also see all the way to the nearest roman garrison.

Asterix sat down on the bench, glancing sideways at Silenceus. The centurion stood on the edge of a small cliff, staring towards the roman garrison.

"You miss your people?" Asterix asked.

Silenceus turned to him, shaking his head lightly, pointing into his mouth and then at his back. Asterix understood. The Roman carried grudge towards those who did this to him.

"Do you have anywhere else to go when you have to leave this village?"

Silenceus shook his head again, looking down. He shrugged, knowing that he had no choice but returning to the legion.

"So you have to return to your duty…" Asterix stated.

Silenceus nodded. Now he was looking at something in the village, following it with his eyes. At first Asterix thought it was Dogmatix he was looking at, since the small, white dog ran around in the same direction as the Roman was looking. But then his eyes caught a feminine figure, walking towards the well. Blanche. Her long, light brown ponytail was dancing on her back as she walked, her behind wiggled along with her steps. Today, she was wearing a dazzling lavender dress, almost reaching all the way down to the ground. She was singing.

Asterix turned around as he heard a frustrated sigh from the centurion. The Roman had turned his back to the village, pressing two fingers against his forehead, as if he had a headache. His eyes were closed. The other hand rested on the handle of his sword.

"Are you alright?" the gaul asked, wondering what caused the sudden mood swing.

Silenceus nodded, then pulling himself together and sighing. He sat down on the bench, resting his head in his hands, staring down at the village. His helmet tilted forward, almost covering his eyes. He pushed it back with a annoyed move.

Asterix sat down beside him. They had been here almost every day, and he had to admit he would miss it when the Roman left, he could of course bring Obelix or someone else, but it was different with the Roman. He was a new person to talk to, even though he couldn't communicate fully. They had shared numerous jokes and stories the last week, despite the fact that they in reality were enemies.

"I never thought I would say this to a Roman, Silenceus. But I will miss you when you're gone." Asterix said, glancing sideways at the centurion.

Silenceus swallowed hard, touched by his words. "I'll miss you guys too." He signed with his hands.

"Especially Blanche, perhaps?" Asterix dared to ask.

The centurion sighed, not even bothering to cover it up. "Especially her…" he nodded.

"I figured so…" Asterix said, not really happy about this knowledge. There was no way a relationship like that would work. The villagers would never accept a Roman marrying a gaulish woman, Blanche wouldn't be allowed to live in the village anymore. And Silenceus didn't have any place to go except the roman garrison, and that was no place for a woman.

"I know." Silenceus signed with a sigh. "I am not going to court her."

"It's not that you're not good enough… but you're… Roman. Relationships with Romans are strictly forbidden in this village."

The Roman nodded. "I know."

Asterix stood up, patting him on the shoulder. "It's hard, I know. I was in love with a Roman actress once, well, I still am. But my home is here… I can't leave this place for her, and she is not allowed to come here… so…" he shrugged. "I heard she is married now. And it's fine. I just want her to be happy."

Silenceus didn't say anything, his face was carved in stone as he looked down at the people in the village. Blanche was gone now, probably gone home.

"Remember, Centurion. Heartbreak doesn't last forever. It will pass."

Silenceus stood up, following Asterix back down to the village, ignoring the hateful glares from the townspeople as they walked back to the house. He lowered his head, now he wouldn't be allowed to go outside until tomorrow. It felt like a prison, though he knew he had nothing to complain about. The gauls had been nice to him, and technically he wasn't a prisoner. He was going to be released as soon as his health was good enough.

He took one last look around before he walked inside. He wished he could stay in this village, never having to go back. He was tired of war, a life in peace in this village really called out to him. But he knew that it was impossible. The chieftain wouldn't allow it, and Brutus would never let him go unless he was dead. If he ran away, he would be hunted down for betraying the empire. He was chained to the military, not being in charge of his own life. It was also a kind of prison, he pondered.

Impedimenta came in shortly after, carrying a bowl of hot soup. She placed it on the table without a word. Then she filled up a cup of fresh water from the well, placing it on the table beside the bowl.

Silenceus bowed for her to thank her, grinning as he spotted a small smile curling up on her lips. She tried to act hard and ice-cold, but didn't succeed in hiding her kind heart. She reminded him of his mother.

She walked outside, he could hear her talking to Asterix. There was also another male voice out there now, he recognized it as Obelix. A little, white dog came running through the door, taking place beside the table, looking up at him with pleading eyes.

Silenceus chuckled, fishing out a piece of meat from the soup, throwing it to the dog. The cute, little animal jumped up, catching it in the air. Then it ran outside with its catch.

Impedimenta came back in as he was done eating, to take the bowl back. He thanked her once more, and then signed "dog" to ask for the dog's name.

"Oh… that's Dogmatix. He's Obelix' dog, though everyone loves him and cares for him. He's sort of a village mascot."

The centurion nodded with a smile. He had always liked dogs.

Obelix peeked in. "There are romans at the gate… but I'm not allowed to get them. Asterix says they wants to talk to you…"

Silenceus hesitated. He really didn't want to talk to any of his own after what they had done to him, but he also knew he had no choice. He was safe as long as he was in this village, but as soon as he stepped outside, they would be all over him. He nodded and signed "only one!".

Shortly after Obelix returned with another Roman dressed in black, just like himself. Silenceus cringed as he recognized him as Tenacius, the man that had cut his tongue out by Brutus order.

"Centurion Silenceus!" Tenacius greeted and he stepped inside.

Silenceus just glared at him.

"Ok ok, carrying grudge, are we?" Tenacius took his helmet off and sat down on the other side of the table. "Look… you know how it is. I had no choice. Brutus would have molested me if I had refused to take orders."

Silenceus growled, wanting to draw his sword and finish the other centurion on the spot.

Tenacius sat still for a moment, just looking around. "The gauls seems to have taken good care of you. I had never expected that from our enemy…"

He stood up, walking around a bit, stroking a finger over various jars and decorations around the room.

"You legionnaires told you had been taken prisoner by the gauls while you were gravely ill. We feared the worst, but one of our scouts had spotted you walking around in this village. Brutus demands that you come back. We're soon leaving for Greece to see princess Irina, and he wants you by his side."

Silenceus grabbed a piece of papyrus and the coal Blanche had given him earlier, writing that he would return to the garrison as soon as his wounds had healed.

"Right. How long do you think it will take?" Tenacius asked. "We're leaving in 27 days."

"I will be there, probably earlier." Silenceus wrote, feeling everything inside him protesting.

"Good. I will report to Brutus that you will be back before we leave." Tenacius put his helmet back on, giving him one last look before he left. Obelix followed him back to the front gate.

Dogmatix came running in, hoping to get another treat. When he realized that there was nothing more, he snorted and jumped into Silenceus' bed, curling up for a nap.

Silenceus smiled bitterly. He was going to miss this place. 27 days… that was the definite deadline. Then he had to return to the military lifestyle. He felt tired, so tired. He would have sacrificed his left arm to live a peaceful life as a peasant instead.

27 days…

To be continued..


	6. Chapter 6

Authors note: I don't own any of the canon characters of Asterix the gaul. They all belong to Dargaud, Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo. I do own Blanche and any other characters I've made up for the story. This story is based off the characters of the live action movie "Asterix at the Olympic Games", but isn't about that story. It just has some of the same characters, such as Silenceus and Brutus.

Songs of Silence

By Ninjalinda

Chapter 6

The sky was grey, a clear warning that a rainstorm was on its way.

It had been only 6 days since Tenacius had been in the village, but Silenceus felt like time was going too fast. He really didn't want to go back, but he knew the day of his departure was getting closer and closer.

Blanche was the one coming with his dinner this day, she was inside the house when Asterix and Silenceus came back from their daily walk.

"It will be rain." Asterix stated, stealing an apple from the plate, it was more food on it than the Roman would ever be able to eat anyway.

Blanche smiled, looking out of the window. "We need some rain now. This summer has been too dry. It will do wonders to my flowers."

"And not to mention the fresh air afterwards… it will be lovely to take a walk after rain." Asterix said, chewing on the apple. "I have to stand guard outside this house though…"

"Is that really necessary? He won't go anywhere…" Blanche glanced at Silenceus who had laid down in the bed, holding an arm under his head, just staring at the ceiling.

"No, but the other villagers feel more secure if I do." Asterix mumbled. "Vitalstatistix has ordered that the house is to be guarded all the time."

"Waste of time…" Blanche mumbled, picking up a broom, starting to sweep the floor. Now and then she glanced at the centurion, blushing as she met his stare. He looked away as he realized she felt uncomfortable by him watching her.

Asterix had walked outside, sitting on the bench. She walked out, sitting beside him, watching how the sky got darker by every moment passing. Thunder rumbled in distance.

"When it starts raining, I will go home. I can keep an eye out from the window at my house. If you need help, scream. I'll let Dogmatix stay here. He'll go get me if you're in danger."

"It's alright, Asterix. I don't think I'll be in danger though… does he seem very dangerous to you?"

"No… but you can never trust a Roman. He might be acting nice, just to stab us in the back as soon as he gets a chance."

"Do you really think so?"

Asterix bit his lip. "I… I don't know actually."

A loud crack accompanied with a flash of light, pulled them both out of their thoughts. A deep rumble followed shortly after, rain came pouring down like a waterfall. Asterix ran to his house, while Blanche covered her head, running back inside.

"My, oh my, what bad weather!" she blurted out, squeezing the water out of her hair. It wasn't many steps from the bench to the door, but the rain had managed to soak her anyway.

Silenceus was standing by the fireplace now, holding his hands to the fire. She walked over, doing the same, trying to dry her clothes too. The centurion quickly went to get two chairs, placing them side by side in front of the fire.

"Thanks!" she moved the chair a little closer to his, sitting down, grabbing the black gown hanging from the back of his uniform, wrapping it around her to get warmer. Normally she would have taken the wet clothes off, but it would be totally inappropriate doing that with a man in the same room, not to mention; a Roman.

"Sorry for disgracing your uniform like this, but I am cold." She explained.

He was about to stand up, to get the blanket from the bed, but she held him back.

"It's fine. I don't need more than this." She whispered, looking into the flames, now pushing her chair even closer to his. Then she leaned her head on his shoulder, drawing in the scent of leather, steel and wool from his uniform.

Silenceus stared into the flames too, but his mind and senses was all directed towards the woman beside him. Desperate, he tried to keep his inner guard up, not allowing himself to feel anything. It would prevent him from hurting when he had to leave.

The flames were getting low. Blanche stood up, putting more firewood on it.

"I'm going to miss you…" she whispered when she turned back to the centurion.

Silenceus looked down, then standing up, walking restless back and forth for a little while. It was the second time someone had said they were going to miss him. It felt good and sad at the same time.

A loud crack and flash from the sky outside made Blanche squeal in fear. In one leap she threw herself at him, grabbing his tunic, clenching it with her eyes shut. Her breath was fast and shivering.

Another lightning made her let go and cover her ears. She didn't open her eyes before the rumbling of the thunder faded away.

"I know it's silly… I'm just so afraid of thunder…"

She looked down at the wooden floor. Silenceus put his hands on her arms and squeezed lightly.  
Gently he lifted her chin with his index finger.  
She met his eyes, something wet blinked in the corners of her eyes before it slowly ran down her cheek. He wiped away her tears with his thumb.  
He accepted her as she leaned against him with a sigh, and put his arms around her in a safe and warm embrace.

They stood like this for a while, until she broke away, wiping her tears with the arm of her dress.

"Thanks, Silenceus. I feel better now." She smiled. "We better get some sleep now. It's late. I'll sleep on the mattress tonight, it rains too much for me to go home."

Silenceus nodded, looking after her as she walked to the little niche behind the curtain. He bowed gallant to bid her good night before she closed the curtain behind her. Then he sat down on his bed, taking his shoes off. He placed his clothes and armor on the chair as he took them off.

Then he pulled the blanket over himself, finding a good position to sleep in, staring at the flames in the fireplace until he fell asleep.

To be continued..


	7. Chapter 7

Authors note: I don't own any of the canon characters of Asterix the gaul. They all belong to Dargaud, Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo. I do own Blanche and any other characters I've made up for the story. This story is based off the characters of the live action movie "Asterix at the Olympic Games", but isn't about that story. It just has some of the same characters, such as Silenceus and Brutus.

Songs of Silence

By Ninjalinda

Chapter 7

Blanche couldn't sleep. Her body wasn't able to relax, she was writhing all the time, not able to find a comfortable position. She just thought of the man sleeping in the main room, she wanted to feel his body, his skin against hers. At the same time, she could not help but hear the sensible part of her mind tell her to watch out.

The rain kept pouring down outside, she laid still, listening to the soothing sound. Now and then a lightning flashed and lit up the room, making her hide under the blanket.

After a while, she got out of bed, folded the curtain aside and tiptoed towards the centurion's bed.

She stopped and listened, wondering if he was asleep as she stood by the bed and looked at him. It looked like he was asleep. He was lying on his stomach with both hands tucked under the pillow. She whispered his name, but he did not move. She sat down on the bed, studying his relaxed face, his beautiful body, his upper body that slowly and almost imperceptibly, raised and lowered as he was breathing. She smiled when she felt a sweet tingling at a point between her thighs.

She raised her hand and stroked him gently over hair, brushed his cheek and continued down the neck and shoulder. Then she ran her hand to his back and continued down the spine as far as she got before the blanket stopped her, she felt her breath getting heavier and the lust literally burned. She gently slipped under the covers and looked at him, she ran her fingers gently over his cheek. Smiling when he finally opened his eyes, giving him time to wake up.  
"I'm not afraid anymore." she whispered.  
He smiled and put his hand over hers. Then he moved further into the bed to make a little more room for her. She laid down close to him, drew in the familiar, but now even more dear scent of him.

He held her in his arms, stroking her hair. He couldn't believe she was there with him, he had to pinch himself to be sure it was not a dream. But the smile she gave him was not to be mistaken. She was there.

They approached each other and met in a gentle, probing kiss. Then the kisses became harder, more demanding. He moved halfway off her, letting his lips caress her neck and ear lobe. She moaned in delight, stroking his neck and back, enjoying the feeling of his naked, warm skin against hers. He moved down, kissing his way down to her breasts.

Her nipples pointed stiff and provocative to him, welcoming him. He lifted his hand and touched one of her soft breasts gently before taking it in his hand, carefully squeezing it. He heard her moan and squirm under him. He looked up. Her eyes were closed, the twitching in her body told him that she enjoyed what he did. He bent down, kissing her cleavage, under and around her breasts before he approached middle. She whimpered and twitched as he let his lips enclose the stiff nipple and sucked it gently into his mouth. His hand ran down her body, did what he had wanted for so long. Following the curves of her body, down the waist, hip, thigh and back up.

His lips teased and toyed with her nipples while his hand went exploring. She trembled slightly, loved what he did to her, loved the way he aroused her. She lifted her head a little and looked at him as he caressed her breasts with his mouth and hands. He stopped and met her eyes, she noticed the tenderness behind the desire and lust in his eyes. He came up to her face, kissing her intensely. Then he pulled back, looking at her.

She wove her hands into his hair, pulled him back down, kissing him hungrily, biting his lower lip. They moved a little until he was lying under her, she was halfway on top of him. She was playing with his earlobe, rejoiced at his groans, his hands on her body. She kissed him on the chest while her hand stroked his stomach, stopped before she reached his lower body and continued back up. Her tongue grazed his nipples which immediately stiffened, she sucked and licked at them in turn. His breathing was heavier and deeper as she continued down his stomach, but not even this time she went further than right under his belly button.

She raised her head, looked at him, hoisted herself up and sat astride him. Her hair hung over her shoulder and she was so beautiful, he really had to pull himself together not to do her right away. Her chest raised and lowered in the same rhythm as her heavy breath, breasts swayed slightly. He raised both hands and touched them, felt the weight of them in his palms. She lowered herself over him so that his mouth hit her nipples, he sucked and bit them lightly. Then he took hold of her and rolled her over on her back, sat up on his knees and looked at her. She was so irresistible and delicious as she laid there smiling at him, stretching her arms towards him. He bent down and kissed her hungrily before he sat up again.

His hands caressed her body, face, neck, shoulders and arms. Then he continued down her breasts, stomach and waist. His fingers were playing along the curve of her thighs, he glanced up at her, stroked his hand over her belly and back down. Her breathing was short and fast, she lifted her belly against him as a sign that she wanted him to move his hand further down.

But he didn't. Not right away. Instead, he moved a little and started stroking her legs with loving but firm movements down the thighs and legs, down to the feet. He turned her around and continued stroking her back, lifting the hair and massaged her neck and shoulders. She rewarded him with delightful moans.

She lifted her buttocks against him when he approached the lower back. She was so aroused, it burned and almost hurt between her thighs. While she wanted him to move faster, she didn't want him to stop what he was doing. It was too pleasant.

He noticed her impatience, but continued at the same pace, stroking over her butt, over to the thighs, down the knees to her ankles. She spread her legs a little so he could see how her juices had made her all wet. He moaned by the sight, feeling a sweet aching in his manhood.

She moaned and whimpered impatient and delighted. He turned her around again, and the desperate look in her eyes told him that she was more than ready for him, wanting to feel him inside her. But he wanted to wait, wanting the enjoyment to last longer. He kissed her breasts again, letting his lips play with the nipple, while the other received similar treatment with a thumb and forefinger. She lifted herself against him as he moved farther down, and came with a long, gasping whimper when his lips touched her vulva.

He sat up and enjoyed the sight of her completely naked in front of him. Then he positioned himself between her legs and drew in the scent of her.

She bent her knees and spread them even more so it was easier for him to get access. He leaned down and tasted her, she lifted herself towards him and gasped gleefully as he ran a finger over her clitoris. He spread her labia with two fingers and massaged her clitoris lightly with another. She was so aroused, it didn't take long before she tensed and came in a trembling orgasm.

When she came back to her senses, he laid next to her and stroked her hair. She turned to him and answered the smile he sent her. She wanted to give him something back as thanks, and leaned over kissing him tenderly. She bit his lower lip, kissed his mouth and continued along the jawbone to the ear lobe. It felt soft and warm against her lips as she sucked it and played with it with her tongue. He gave off a low groan as she kissed and licked her way down his torso.

This time she took him in her hand and felt the immediate impact of touch, his manhood hardened even more, and she heard his strained moan. His breathing started to go faster as she massaged him with both hands. Then she stopped, wanted to taste him. She let her tongue slide up from root to tip before she took him in her mouth. He squirmed and sighed heavily of wellbeing when she began working with him.

The stimulation was so intense, he felt it wouldn't be long before he exploded.  
He sat up and got her to lay on her back. His fingers searched his way to her wet opening, she moaned as he rubbed her clitoris carefully.

Again, she was on the way to the edge of an orgasm, but before she came that far, his fingers disappeared and was replaced by something bigger pressing against her opening. She raised her lower body to meet him and moaned loudly as he slid into her. He kissed her as he began to move. She adapted to the rhythm that increased steadily and her muscles squeezed his manhood. It was awesome to feel him inside her, and she wished the feeling would never go away.

He stopped and sat down on his knees, lifting her legs and put them on his shoulders. Then he entered her again, pushing her against the mattress with his body weight. It was not uncomfortable, she rejoiced in the feeling of having him deep inside. He began to move again, they met each other at an accelerating pace, faster and harder. She cried and moaned in pleasure, forgetting everything else around them. She had the feeling of flying higher and higher into the sky until everything exploded.

As she came, he felt her convulsions massaging him wonderfully. Lust, love and desire coiled up inside him, making him unable to hold back anymore. A loud and guttural exclamation escaped him as the release came, and after a final thrust he collapsed exhausted on top of her. His breath and pulse went at a furious pace, he rolled off her and laid down with his eyes closed to recover.

She also had her eyes closed, feeling the satisfaction spreading throughout her body as both breathing and pulse slowly but surely calmed. She turned to him and kissed him before she curled up against his body. His warm and strong arms held her, one of his hands stroked her back. She gave him a small kiss on his neck and closed her eyes again with a smile on her lips.

Her breath started to slow down as she fell asleep in his arms. The rain kept pouring down outside, deep thunder rumbled in distance.

Silenceus buried his nose into her soft hair and stared thoughtful into the darkness of the room. The fire had burned out, but he didn't want get up and put more wood on it, it would wake up Blanche.

He was ashamed of himself. He had broken his promise to himself, giving in to his feelings. This would hurt them both badly the day he had to leave. But now it was too late. It couldn't be undone. All they could do now was making the best out of the days they had left together.

To be continued..


	8. Chapter 8

Authors note: I don't own any of the canon characters of Asterix the gaul. They all belong to Dargaud, Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo. I do own Blanche and any other characters I've made up for the story. This story is based off the characters of the live action movie "Asterix at the Olympic Games", but isn't about that story. It just has some of the same characters, such as Silenceus and Brutus.

Songs of Silence

By Ninjalinda/LittleRedToyota

Chapter 8

Blanche woke up by the sun shining through the window the next morning, smiling with her eyes still closed by the feeling of a warm body beside her. Poor Silenceus, she through, his arm was probably numb after she had been sleeping on it all night.

She cuddled him and stroke a hand over his chest.

"You better get dressed before Impedimenta comes in an sees you, Blanche…" a male voice said.

She jumped in surprise. It was Asterix sitting on a chair by the fireplace, staring into the flames.

"By Belenos… how long have you been sitting here?!" She whispered, pulling the blanket up to cover herself, even though he didn't look at her. She blushed deeply, knowing that sleeping with a roman would be considered a terrible sin in the village.

"Not long… I just came in actually. Now, hurry! Go get your clothes! If Impedimenta see you like this, it will be all over the village before noon, so get dressed and act normal! I won't look, I promise."

Asterix put more firewood on the fire, keeping his stare into the warm glow.

Blanche blushed even more as she pulled the blanket off the bed, leaving Silenceus naked, then running barefoot over the floor to the niche behind the curtain. Shameful that she hadn't thought of going back to her own bed before morning, she pulled on her clothes, combing her hair with a bone-comb, then tying it up with a silk band. Now, she was ready, she took the blanket and walked back to the mainroom.

Silenceus was awake now, and dressed, sitting by the table in his black tunic. He only used the armor when he was going outside the house, for safety. Not every villager took lightly on having a roman living among them, even if it was for just a limited time. He could never walk alone, Asterix was always with him, to make the villagers feel safe. Blanche grinned, it was rather de other way around; Silenceus was probably in more danger than they were. He was alone, surrounded by the enemy. She wished she could have taken him for a walk in the forest, but sadly he couldn't even leave the village without being taken away by the Romans. If they saw that he was well again, they would order him to come back.

"Good morning!" she smiled to them both. Asterix sat by the table with Silenceus now, seemingly deep in thought. The Roman on the other hand, looked up with a shy smile and then nailed his stare to the wooden tableplate again, shameful of what he had done. She understood, she felt the same herself, because she knew they could never be together.

Asterix sighed heavily. "Blanche…. Centurion…." He began.

"I know, Asterix! I know… it just happened. I…" she looked at Silenceus, meeting his stare. "… we fell in love. I never meant this to happen… and nor did Silenceus."

Asterix looked sad. "I know. And if the circumstances had been different, I would have been happy for you both… but you know the villagers opinion about Romans and the rules… nobody must get to know of this!"

"Then don't tell anyone!" Blanche sat down beside Silenceus, holding his hand under the table. He squeezed it lightly to show her support.

"I won't, I consider both of you my friends…" the blonde Gaul looked at the Roman. "… even if it's unheard of a Gaul to call a Roman a friend…"

Silenceus nodded and gave him a smile to sign that he also considered the Gaul as a friend.

"I know how hard it is to stay away from each other when the love is fresh, so I won't tell you to. We all know that Silenceus will have to leave soon anyway." Asterix sighed, thinking of Latraviata. "I know how intense love can be… so I say; even if you both will hurt when you get separated, enjoy it while you can. Just be careful and never let anyone see you, or suspect that anything is going on. Especially not Impedimenta… if she gets to know this, you will never be allowed to enter this house again, Blanche."

Asterix looked at them both with a sad smile, knowing how painful the upcoming separation would be for the couple, but at the same time, he couldn't bring himself to keep them away from each other.

"I won't tell anyone… and none of you must every say a word about it to anyone either!" he stated.

Silenceus bursted out in laughter, seeing the irony in Asterix' comment.

Blanche and Asterix gave him a weird look, then it came to them too, and they all laughed.

"Especially not you, Centurion!" Asterix punched him friendly in the shoulder with a fist.

They were still laughing as they heard steps outside. Blanche quickly stood up, starting to sweep the floor, not wanting to be seen too close to the Roman.

Impedimenta came in with breakfast. "Good morning" she said, measuring up some medicine for Silenceus in a cup. "You won't need this much longer, but it's better to be safe than sorry."

The centurion crinkled his nose by the intense smell from the drink, but took the cup.

"Oh come on! We have been through this so many times now, and you know there is no way out, so DRINK!" she said, pushing his hand with the cup to his mouth.

"Mmm!" Silenceus turned a bit away to avoid being forced, and drank the whole cup in one sip, cringing a bit as it burned his troath, then he grabbed a cup of water and drank desperately.

Impedimenta rolled her eyes, but had a motherly tone in her voice as she turned to Asterix to complain. "Every day it's the same! He doesn't like our fine medicine!"

Asterix giggled, turning to the bowls she had placed on the table. "What do you bring us today?"

"Leftovers from yesterday's dinner." She smiled. "I made a soup of it though. To make it easier for him to eat it." She glanced at the Roman as she put a bowl in front of him. "It has good taste. I mixed in some herbs to add a little extra touch. It has vegetables and wild boar meat, and a little bread to go with it." She cut a lump of bread in pieces, giving each of them one piece each.

"Thank you, Impedimenta!" Blanche took place by the table, placing herself in appropriate distance of Silenceus.

Impedimenta waited a little while, before taking a look at Silenceus' wounds. "They seem to be healing fine, Roman. They will leave scars, but I am sure you barbarians don't mind that. Battle scars give a kind of status, don't it?"

Silenceus didn't bother responding to her mockery of Romans, he had gotten used to her switching between being motherly and hostile.

"Open wide!" she said and squeezed his cheeks to get him to open his mouth. She looked in and frowned, putting a finger in to touch the wound from the tongue.

"Aaaahhh!" Silenceus twitched a bit by the pain, raising a hand to push her away, but able to stop himself.

"This need a little more time, but it's looking good." Impedimenta stated and pat him on the shoulder with a blink. "…and a little more medicine to be sure to keep the infection away."

Silenceus made a vomiting-noise to show his dismay about the medicine.

"Hey! I told you not to complain, filthy Roman!" she scolded, but having a smile on her lips to take the sting out of the comment.

"Good morning!" Getafix walked through the door, along with Obelix. "How is our patient doing?"

Impedimenta told him about the Roman's status, while the others were eating. Obelix was standing in the middle of the room, staring at the food with a hungry stare. He was also unsure of the situation, as he hadn't been able to spend much time with Asterix for a while. His blonde friend was almost sitting guard at this place all the time. Or he was walking the Roman around the village, the big, redhaired Gaul felt a sting of jealousy every time he saw them together, even though he knew Asterix would never drop their solid friendship for a Roman.

Asterix looked up. "Come sit with us, old friend!" he smiled as he pulled out a chair to him.

Obelix walked over, sitting down while he glanced cautiously at the Centurion dipping some bread into the soup. The Roman obviously had trouble eating it dry. Obelix' stare then wandered to his soupbowl. He didn't even notice his mouth was half open, until the Centurion looked at him, raising an eyebrow. He quickly looked away, ashamed of himself and his never ending hunger. Then he heard a scraping sound against the table surface. He glanced to the side, the Roman was pushing his bowl over to him. Then he motioned against it, making Obelix understand that he could eat it.

"Thank you, Roman." He mumbled and grabbed the bowl with both hands, looking questioning at the soldier again to make sure it wasn't a joke. The Roman patted his stomach to show that he was full, but even Obelix understood that he couldn't possibly be full after just a few mouthfuls.

Obelix swallowed hard, the urge to empty the bowl was strong, but after an inner fight with himself, he took his helmet off, pouring half of the soup into it and then giving the bowl back to the Roman. A smile ran across the Centurion's face as he got the bowl back, he dipped a piece of bread in it and chewed slowly.

Obelix was already done eating. "What's your name, Roman?"

The black armored praetorian looked up from his food, then throwing a glance at the others, looking a bit uncomfortable. A strange silence lingered around the table.

"What? Why don't you say anything?" Obelix leaned closer to the Centurion.

Asterix cleared his troath. "His name is Silenceus. He is mute, Obelix."

"Oh…" Obelix looked dumbfounded. "… you mean he can't talk?"

"Correct." Asterix replied short.

Obelix scratched his head. "So… when you and him take that daily walk, he don't say a word? You don't say anything, share secrets and have deep talks and such?"

"Well, I do the talking."

"And he doesn't say anything?"

"No…"

"So he can't interrupt you when he's tired of listening to you?"

"Uhh… no."

"Poor Roman…"

Everyone around the table burst into laughter by Obelix comment. Asterix slapped Obelix at the back of his head, then laughing out loud. Obelix was relieved. Now he knew that there wasn't any deep friendship between Asterix and Silenceus. His position as the blonde Gaul's bestfriend was safe.

To be continued…


	9. Chapter 9

Authors note: I don't own any of the canon characters of Asterix the gaul. They all belong to Dargaud, Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo. I do own Blanche and any other characters I've made up for the story. This story is based off the characters of the live action movie "Asterix at the Olympic Games", but isn't about that story. It just has some of the same characters, such as Silenceus and Brutus.

Songs of Silence

By Ninjalinda/LittleRedToyota

Chapter 9

It was night. Blanche was standing behind Silenceus, massaging his shoulders with firm hands. Now and then she leaned forward to kiss his neck, the skin was extra soft where the hairs ended. She couldn't resist stroking a finger lightly over it. He shuddered by the tickle.

"Ticklish, huh?" She walked around to sit on his lap, wrapping his cape around them. She leaned against his chest, staring into the fireplace.

Asterix came in, pulling a chair to the fireplace too. He sighed heavy.

"The chief knows about you two." He suddenly said. "He freaked out completely."

Blanche jumped and sat up straight. "But… but how?"

"Turns out Impedimenta has seen you kiss, peeking in the window." Asterix rested his hands on his knees, looking at them sideways. "Vitalstatistix is on his way here…"

Silenceus rubbed pressed two fingers against his nosebridge. A groan escaped his lips. He would be chased away from the village now. He wouldn't have minded if it weren't for Blanche. He was well enough to go back to the Roman garrison, but she held him back. Not directly, but his own feelings for her tied him to this place. Now, the departure couldn't be delayed anymore.

He looked at Asterix. "Mmm?" He motioned against Blanche.

"The villagers will not be pleased, but… she is one of us. Nobody will harm her, but it won't be pleasant to live here after having a relationship with the enemy. She will be treated like a lepracy-patient… an outsider."

Blanche sobbed, clenching Silenceus' tunic while crying against his chest. The centurion stroked her carefully on her back, an attempt to comfort her, but it only made her cry harder.

Asterix watched them with sadness in his eyes. He would have given his left arm to save them from this, to give them their happily ever after. But there wasn't anything he could do.

At the same moment, Vitalstatistix came busting in the door. He stopped right inside, taking in the sight. The young Gaulish woman clinging to the Roman soldier, Asterix sitting beside them looking devastated.

"What the hell is going on here?!" the chieftain shouted. "What are you thinking of, Blanche?!"

Asterix stood up, trying to hold the redhaired, chubby man back, but he marched towards the couple by the fireplace. "Impedimenta told me everything! You are forbidden to enter this house again, until this…. This… this filthy Roman dog leaves! And I will make sure he leaves fast, you'll be sure of that!"

Blanche stood up, looking at him with tearful eyes. "Chief, please… I love him. You can't do this…"

"Shut up, woman!" Vitalstatistix roared and raised his hand to slap her. Silenceus stood up, grabbing the chief's hand with a firm irongrip. Vitalstatistix tried to pull out of his grip, but it was too tight. The two men stood there, staring into each other's eyes fiercely.

Blanche pulled Silenceus' arm. "Silenceus… let him go… please. He didn't mean to harm me, he's just upset."

Silenceus moved his stare to her, then back to the chief, releasing his grip but never letting go of him with his eyes. Vitalstatistix rubbed his wrist while glaring back.

"We let you stay here until your wounds were healed, we shared our food and took care of you… and THIS is how you thank us?! By manipulating young women to… to… mate with you! Filthy Roman worm!" the chief growled.

Silenceus was about to jump at him, but was held back by Blanche. An uncanny growl from the depth of his throat made the chieftain shudder and take a step back.

Asterix walked over to Vitalstatistix trying to reason with him. "Chief…"

"Stay out of this, Asterix!"

Vitalstatistix pulled his sword out of the sheath. "For abusing our trust… and taking advantage of a young woman, I challenge you to a fight of life and death!" he shouted and threw his sword in front of the Roman soldier.

A grin ran across Silenceus' face. The chubby, old man would be no match for a trained soldier like himself. There was no doubt who would win, but he admired the chieftain's courage. He pulled his own sword and threw it on top of the other to accept the challenge.

"Stop it!" a highpitched voice shouted from the door.

Everyone turned towards Impedimenta, the tiny lady was looking towering in the doorway. Behind her, Obelix peeked in with Dogmatix on his arm. Getafix was standing calm in the back.

"Honey… this is the chiefs business!" Vitalstatistix protested, but had to back up as she walked towards him with her finger pointed upwards.

"Now! Sit down!" She pointed at the chairs around the table. "All of you!"

Asterix, Obelix, Blanche, Getafix and Vitalstatistix obeyed her at once, but Silenceus hesitated. He was confused, but also defiant after the chief's behavior towards him.

Impedimenta walked towards him, looking as threatening as only the chieftain's wife could look. "You too, Roman!" she barked.

Silenceus sat down between Blanche and Asterix. Blanche was crying silently, but Vitalstatistix slapped his hand as he tried to take her hand in his. Furious he lounged out his right arm, grabbing the chieftain's collar, pulling him over the table. Then suddenly he found himself pinned up against the wall, lifted up with a strong arm. Obelix was holding him high up, his feet wasn't even touching the floor.

"Stop it, I said!" Impedimenta scolded. "All three of you! You should be ashamed of yourselves!"

"Obelix… put him down." Asterix begged.

Obelix placed Silenceus firmly back on the chair, getting an angry glare in return.

Impedimenta stood by the table end, eyeing them all furiously.

"Now, you all are going to sit still and listen to me!" she began. "We are going to act as civilized people, even though that term is unknown to some of us…" she glared at her husband.

He sighed and rolled his eyes. She never let go of an opportunity to tell him about her brother in Lutetia, and how bad she would love to live there instead of this "hole" as she called it.

"I am not going to make a long speech about why Gauls and Romans can't be together." She continued, looking at Blanche. "We all know why it's doomed even before it started."

Silenceus nailed his stare to the table. He knew it all too well, and he cursed himself for being too weak to stand up against his own feelings. Now he wouldn't only hurt himself, but also the woman he loved so much. And she was sentenced to a poorer life than him. HE had something to go back to; he would be treated like normal by the other soldiers. But Blanche… she would have to live with the judgment and disgust from her own people… maybe for the rest of her life.

Impedimenta kept her stare on Blanche. "Blanche… I am very disappointed in you. I don't know what you were thinking. But what's done is done, the damage has already happened. And now we have to find a solution to this."

"I am going to throw this creep out of the village today!" Vitalstatistix roared, slamming a fist into the table.

"Did I allow you to speak?!" Impedimenta nailed him with her stare. He slumped low, there was no doubt who was the real boss.

Blanche took the chieftain's hand. "Please! Let him stay… he is supposed to leave soon anyway. The Romans are coming to get him in just 4 days… please… let us be together until then. We will never see each other again after that, so let us have those 4 days! 4 days, chief! That's all I ask!"

Vitalstatistix pulled his hand away, refusing to look at her. "The villagers will not accept it! As soon as they know what you two have done, they will take action themselves, and throw this damn Roman out after molesting him."

"Not if you don't inform them." Asterix suddenly said, raising an eyebrow to the chief.

"Not inform them?! Are you out of your mind? We do not keep secrets in this village!"

"Oh yes, we do…" Asterix went on. "I've done a terrible thing… totally against the village laws."

Now everyone, expect Blanche, raised an eyebrow, looking at the short, blonde Gaul.

"Centurion Silenceus would have died the first night if I hadn't given him some of the magic potion." Asterix raised his hands. "I know what everyone's view is on this, but I don't differ: a life is a life. Getafix taught me that. He helps everyone, even Romans."

"Now I never…." Vitalstatistix stumbled in his words, too shocked to say anything that made sense.

"I know it's considered treacherous to give magic potion to a Roman, but believe me when I say I did it for the benefits of this village." Asterix continued.

"By Teutatis… have you been drinking illegal potions?! Benefits of the village?! How on earth is this for the benefits of the village?!" Vitalstatistix took his helmet off, wiping the sweat of his forehead with his arm. This was almost too much to take in. His most trusted warrior had broken the village's first and most important law. And was even trying to say it was for the villages own good!

"Hear me out, chief." Asterix said calmly. "This guy is Brutus' praetorian, his personal bodyguard, one of his most trusted men. If this Roman had died in this village or right outside of it… The whole place would have been crawling with legions avenging his death!"

Obelix clapped his hands in joy, only by imagining it.

"It would have been too much for us to handle… even for you, Obelix!" Asterix scolded.

Vitalstatistix scratched his head. He had to admit he hadn't seen it that way.

"And now I am going to drop another bucket of ice in your head, chief. I, who you forbid to help treating this Roman, went behind your back. I brewed some medicine in secrecy." Getafix spoke up for the first time. Calm and wise, as usual.

The chieftain looked like a beaten dog. Was everyone turning against him?

"Why…?" he finally managed to stutter.

"To make sure he got well faster, of course!" the druid said. "Sometimes you don't know your own good, sonny! You were the one who wanted him out of the village as fast as possible… and with my help it would go faster. But you forbid me, so I went behind your back. For the village's sake."

"Are you accusing me for being a bad leader?!" Vitalstatistix stood up, looking both heartbroken and furious at the same time.

"Not at all, young one." Getafix kept his calm, wise appearance, even though the chief was barking at him. "All I say is that you sometimes need a push in the right direction…"

The chieftain sat down again, resting his face him his hands, sighing heavily, pulling his hands over his face, tired.

"Looks like my mind has been made up for me…" he sighed, hanging his head low between his shoulders, looking at the table. "You wise guys. Tell me how we break this news to the village then."

"We're not going to tell them anything. The only persons who know about it, is in this room…" Asterix said with low voice. "I am not going to say a word, that's for sure! All that matters is the village safety… and Blanche's happiness."

"She will be heartbroken when the Roman has to leave anyway, why is it better to delay it with a few days?" Vitalstatistix mumbled.

Impedimenta put an arm around his shoulders. "Love, dear. It's a strong force, and a very rare gift. It's important to enjoy it while it's there. If you knew you and I had to get separated, would you prefer it to happen now, without proper goodbyes and right after a quarrel with so many people… or would you wanted to delay it and spend the last days together?"

Vitalstatistix didn't say anything. He knew he was beaten. Nothing he said would change anything. The only thing he would achieve by telling the town, was hurting Blanche and sentence her to live as an outsider people would spit on. He shook his head, he couldn't do that.

He looked up, watching Blanche leaning against the centurion who held an arm around her. Her eyes were big and wet from tears, but they also carried a warm glow. The same glow he had seen in Impedimenta's eyes when they were younger. Blanche's face revealed that she feared the worst. To be separated from her love. He moved his eyes to the Roman, seeing the same warmth in his eyes as in Blanche's. This love was mutual.

"Love can bloom even on a battlefield…" Impedimenta whispered into his ear.

He nodded. "4 days…" he mumbled, feeling numb, even when Blanche squealed and threw her arms around his neck in joy. "But I am not supporting this… it's wrong and against the principles! I am not going to say anything about this to the rest of the village, Blanche. But that is only to save you from a lifelong shame! Which in my mind; you actually deserve!"

Impedimenta put a hand over his mouth. "Now, now… don't talk before thinking, dear."

Asterix looked around the table. "Do we all agree to shut up about this? Not telling anyone!"

Silenceus nodded, drawing a cross over his heart and raising his hand.

"I am good at keeping secrets." Obelix said, smiling to Blanche.

Impedimenta answered both for herself and her husband. "Not a word to anyone!"

Getafix held a hand over his heart. "Count on me."

Vitalstatistix put his helmet back on, standing up. "Alright then. You two have 4 days, make sure you spend them wisely. And that nobody gets to know about it!"

With those words he walked out of the house.

To be continued…


	10. Chapter 10

Authors note: I don't own any of the canon characters of Asterix the gaul. They all belong to Dargaud, Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo. I do own Blanche and any other characters I've made up for the story. This story is based off the characters of the live action movie "Asterix at the Olympic Games", but isn't about that story. It just has some of the same characters, such as Silenceus and Brutus.

Songs of Silence

By Ninjalinda/LittleRedToyota

Chapter 10

Blanche looked up at the sun as she was on the way to the well to get more water. Time was going too fast when you wanted it to go slower. 2 days left.

She blinked away a tear, pushing the thought away desperately. She didn't want to think of it, all she wanted was to live in the moment and enjoy love while she still had it.

The buckets felt heavy as she walked back to the roman house, she spilt more than she usually would, the tears made her vision blurry.

"Let me take them." Asterix jumped up from the bench outside the house. In one leap, he was standing in front of her, offering to take the buckets.

"Thanks…" Blanche stumbled towards the bench, sitting down with her face hidden in her hands.

She heard the bench creak as Asterix sat down, placing the buckets on the grass in front of him.

"Blanche…"

"It's no use, Asterix. There is no way to cheer me up, I have to cope with this alone. I brought this upon myself… I should have stayed away from him, I never should have allowed my feelings to guide me." Blanche whispered. "He's a roman. I am a gaul. The relationship was doomed from the very beginning, Asterix. I knew it, he knew it… but still we jumped into it, even though we knew we would end up hurting. You can't cheer me up… not now that there is only two days left before I lose him. My chance of ever seeing him again is next to nothing…"

Asterix sighed, feeling her sadness as if it was his own. There was nothing he could say or do, he knew it.

For the longest time they sat like this, not saying anything. Asterix turned his face to the sun, closing his eyes while feeling the warmth.

"It's a lovely day…" he mumbled.

Blanche looked up. "It is… I just wish I could have enjoyed it with Silenceus… but we can't show ourselves together outside, and he always have to be guarded by you or Obelix if he goes outside… the only time he and I can be alone is when we're inside that house. Like a prison…"

Asterix followed a bird with his eyes, watching it until it landed on the fence surrounding the village.

"Blanche… meet me behind my hut after dinner, ok?"

Blanche looked at him, a glimpse of hope sparkled in her eyes. "But…"

"No buts, just do it."

"Ok…"

Asterix smiled to her as he stood up and lifted the buckets, carrying them inside the house.

Silenceus was walking restless around in the room, now and then he looked out of the window. Asterix saw the longing in his eyes, feeling incredibly sorry for the Roman. The centurion was behaving like a caged animal, longing for the fresh air and freedom outside the walls of his prison. Even though the soldier technically wasn't trapped, and he was free to leave if he wanted, he was still being held captive… by his own heart. It was the strong feelings he had for Blanche, who kept him from running out of the house, out of the village, without looking back.

"You look like you could need some fresh air, centurion." Asterix said, placing the buckets by the fireplace.

Silenceus turned towards him. The pain in his eyes was so strong it struck Asterix straight in the heart. It was the eyes of a beaten man. The Roman nodded, with his stare held down to the floor.

"Look… This isn't easy for any of you two. I have no way to help you guys, but know that I feel for you both. I really wish there was anything I could do to make you guys being able to stay together forever…"

Silenceus shook his head and raised a hand. Asterix understood the sign; the soldier tried to tell him that it was the thought that counted, and that he appreciated his concern.

"Let's go for our daily walk after dinner, ok?" Asterix said, trying to brighten the mood a little.

Silenceus nodded, still pacing back and forth across the room.

"Could you… please, just… sit down or something? I'll go nuts if you keep walking around like that!" Asterix blurted out, he got exhausted just by looking at the other man walking around restless.

Silenceus obeyed him, sitting down on a chair by the table, but unable to sit completely still, he grabbed a spoon and started toying with it.

Asterix sighed, but didn't bother telling him to stop this time, he just had to hold on until dinner.

He could have danced in relief as he saw Impedimenta walking towards the house with a huge plate full of leftovers from the chieftains table. The smell of delicious food reached him even before she walked in.

"Dinner is served!" she beamed as she walked in and placed the food on the table. It was more than usual. Asterix didn't tell Silenceus, but he knew it was because the other villagers had celebrated the centurion's departure tomorrow. Instead he pretended like nothing and complimented Impedimenta's cooking.

"Where is Blanche?" the chieftain's wife asked as she poured some water from a mug.

"Right here…" Blanche walked in the door and took place beside Silenceus by the table. She no longer bothered hiding her feelings for the Roman, everyone in the room knew about it anyway.

Impedimenta didn't say anything, but left the house with a sad glance at the couple. She cared for Blanche, and hated to know that she would hurt badly soon. She could only imagine how it would have felt if she would have to be separated from Majestix. The thought made her speed up, planning to be extra nice to him today.

Back inside the roman house, the trio sitting there felt like it took forever to finish eating.

"You need to eat, guys…" Asterix tried as he saw Blanche and Silenceus only moving their food around on the plate. "It's good!"

"Yes, it's not that… I'm just not hungry…" Blanche mumbled, pushing the plate away from herself. Then she stood up and walked outside, running towards Asterix' house, sitting down behind it. Waiting impatiently.

Silenceus stared at the door after she left, then turning towards Asterix with a questionable look.

"She's probably just tired…" Asterix started. "Just leave her alone for a while…"

Silenceus frowned but dropped following the subject any longer. He turned back to his food, but without eating it. He just sat there, staring at the plate.

"Ok… I guess you're not hungry either?" Asterix said sarcastic, but then smiled to take the sharp edge off his comment. "Let's go for a walk instead."

Those words had a remarkable effect. As Silenceus jumped up from his chair and got ready almost before Asterix finished the sentence. The blonde gaul shook his head smiling, then led the way outside. Villagers glared at them as they walked through the village. They walked to a remote place at the back of the village, near the north fence. A small stream ran through a small grassy glen, surrounded by trees and bushes. Silenceus looked around with a smile. The sun warmed intensely, he couldn't resist sitting down in the soft grass, pulling a few straws up, smelling them. He had always loved the smell of grass.

"Ok, centurion… just wait here. I'll be right back!" Asterix said as he ran off.

Silenceus felt a bit uncomfortable by being left behind, he knew he had no chance if the villagers ganged up on him. He moved himself to the shade of a tree, sitting with his back towards the wooden fence. That way he could keep a good eye on the surroundings, making sure nobody would be able to sneak up on him.

His senses tensed as he heard footsteps approaching, a female voice reached him. Blanche. He could pick her voice out of a huge crowd of people anytime.

She smiled as she spotted him. He stood up and met her halfway across the glen.

"I'll leave you guys alone for a little while. Don't worry, I will stand guard in case anyone walks this way." With those words, Asterix walked back to the small bridge across the stream, sitting down on the big stone beside it.

Blanche took Silenceus' hand and led him to the stream. "Come, I wanna show you something!"

By the waterline, she kicked her shoes off and waited for Silenceus to do the same. A bit hesitating, he untied the straps keeping them on. Barefoted he, he smiled by the feeling of the soft grass under his feet. He couldn't remember the last time he had walked barefooted through the grass. The last time he could recall for sure was when he was a kid. But that was at least three decades ago.

Blanche pulled him towards the water, sitting down on the edge, putting her feet into the chill water.

"Come on, it feels great."

Silenceus sat by her side, putting his feet in the water too.

"And now… wait for it…" Blanche smiled, staring into the water.

Silenceus followed her stare, to his surprise a skool of tiny fishes came out from the rocks underwater, curious about the feets. He chuckled as they tasted his skin, it tickled.

"Cool, right?" Blanche beamed, wiggling her toes to get the fishes attention. "They're minnows. Very curious fishes."

She pulled her feet up and laid down on her belly instead, resting her head in one hand, while she put the other hand into the water, making the fishes follow it around in circles.

Silenceus laid down beside her, putting an arm around her while looking at the fishes. Blanche leaned her head towards his head, closing her eyes.

"I wish that if I closed my eyes forever, everything would stay like it is now." she whispered, then turning her head to him, kissing him softly on the lips. She put her arms around him, giving him a push so they rolled over with her on top of him. She clung to him as she kissed him more and more intense. Some tall grass tickled them both as the rolled around, kissing each other with passion. Blanche felt the lust burning as a fire between her tighs. She placed a hand between Silenceus' legs, feeling that he was as aroused as she was. She rubbed her hand against his manhood outside his pants, feeling how it was growing under the textile. Unpatiently, she started to untie the belt keeping his pants up.

"Blanche! Centurion!" a voice cut through the air.

Blanche held back a frustrated scream, but an annoyed sigh escaped her anyway. "Not now…." she mumbled, tying the belt again, standing up and pulling a hand over her hair.

Asterix walked over to them, knowing he had interrupted something. "I think we should go back now… the others will start to wonder if you both disappear at the same time. They might start looking for you, Blanche…"

Blanche nodded. "Yes, sure…"

"Also, I think you should wait here for a little while… so we don't arrive back in the village at the same time."

"You're right… we shouldn't be seen together…" Blanche looked down, still feeling the hot kisses burning on her lips.

Asterix and Silenceus started walking back towards the bridge.

"Thanks, Asterix. For letting us spend some time together outside the house." she said before they got too far away to hear her.

"You're welcome."

She sighed as she laid down in the grass, looking up at the clear blue sky. Another day was soon to be ending, shortening down the time left with the one she loved.

To be continued…


	11. Chapter 11

Authors note: I don't own any of the canon characters of Asterix the gaul. They all belong to Dargaud, Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo. I do own Blanche and any other characters I've made up for the story. This story is based off the characters of the live action movie "Asterix at the Olympic Games", but isn't about that story. It just has some of the same characters, such as Silenceus and Brutus.

Songs of Silence

By Ninjalinda/LittleRedToyota

Chapter 11

The last night… Blanche cuddled as close to Silenceus as she possibly could, tears running down her face constantly. She stroked his back, now even he started crying. His body was shivering so hard, the bed creaked. They clung to each other until they both were soaked in tears and sweat. After a long while there were no tears left. They lied there sobbing, while looking into each other's eyes…

Blanche ran a finger over his nose bridge, up to his forehead, running her hand through his hair. He kissed her. Careful at first, then more craving. She put her leg over his hip to get even closer to him. He stroked her thigh and up towards her breasts. Her nipples stiffened. His manhood grew harder against her leg. For a moment she thought they had to be crazy, wanting to make love now, but then she remembered that it could be the last time.

She kissed him deep, using her tongue even though he couldn't reply with the same. She had never felt so close to him before, never had more intense feelings than this. Her breath was heavy and deep. She caressed his body every place she could reach, wanting to remember each muscle, each part of his skin. He moaned low against her mouth while she explored him, lying completely still, almost holding his breath in rejoice.

It was finally her turn to be caressed. She rolled over to lay on her back, throwing her head back when his mouth closed around her nipple.

He took his time. First he explored her with his fingers, then he kissed on every spot his fingers had been. She was close to screaming from lust.

Finally, he positioned himself over her and allowed his manhood to find its way inside her.

She could have sworn that she felt him in her whole body. The feeling made her cry again. Quiet this time, as if the sorrow and hopelessness has paralyzed her and made her stop fighting. She met him in his slow movements by lifting her hips every time he slipped into her. He kissed her face, again and again. She barely noticed. Everything melted together in lust and desire.

She had no idea how she managed to fall asleep that night, but the next morning she woke up by Asterix shaking her gently.

"Breakfast is ready, Blanche." He said, but without any joy in his voice. He knew what this day meant to her.

Blanche looked to the side, but Silenceus wasn't there. Had he left already?

"Asterix…? Where is Silenceus?" she managed to whimper, tears were already forming in her eyes.

"Mmm!" Silenceus turned to her, standing by the fireplace in full armor. She breathed out in relief.

Asterix shook his head with a sad smile. "You seriously thought he would leave without saying goodbye to you?"

She wrapped the blanket around herself, walking over to the niche behind the curtain to get dressed.

Both men sat by the table when she came back, chewing thoughtfully on some bread.

She sat down beside Silenceus, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek.

None of them said much while eating, the thought of the separation occupied their thoughts.

Obelix peeked in the door. "The Romans are here to get the… Roman."

Blanche hid her face in her hands, leaning over the table. It was too soon!

Silenceus stroked her over her back, in a poor attempt to comfort her. His face was full of pain.

Asterix stood up. "I'll leave you two alone a little while, I'll be waiting outside. Come out when you're ready, centurion." He walked out and sat on the bench under the tree together with Obelix.

"Poor Blanche." Obelix stated after staring at the sky for a while, holding Dogmatix in his arms while stroking the soft white fur.

"Yeah…" Asterix sighed. He felt like crying himself.

"I haven't told anyone about her and the Roman." Obelix whispered. "Nobody knows."

"That's good. Nobody must ever get to know about this. Blanche will be a nobody to everyone… they will spit at her."

"That's unfair."

"Yeah…"

Asterix turned around as he heard footsteps behind him. The Roman centurion came walking with his stare nailed to the ground, his expression and body language showed how heartbroken he was. He met Asterix' stare and nodded. He was ready to leave now. He looked back at the house one last time, before walking after the little Gaul towards the main gate of the village. Everywhere along their path, villagers were standing shouting swearwords and spitting after him. He gritted his teeth, keeping his stare at the gate, he heard his people talking outside but couldn't see them. The gate was still closed.

Blanche felt like she was shattered in pieces as Silenceus walked out the door, the last she saw of him was his black cape. How was she going to deal with this pain, it was so intense, like she was broken inside. She screamed without a sound, every muscle in her body was like a tight knot, she didn't notice the pain as her nails buried themselves into her palms causing her to bleed.

She felt like she needed to vomit, but wasn't able to move, she was frozen in this painful position. Slowly she started rocking herself back and forth, hoping it would ease the pain a little. A low howl escaped her as the tears finally loosened and started streaming down her cheeks. The sob felt like a release. Finally, she laid down on the floor, crying her heart out.

Asterix turned to the centurion, bidding him farewell. He wanted to shake his hand, or pat him on the shoulder, but the villagers were all watching, so he couldn't. Silenceus nodded, he understood, no words were needed.

"I'm going to follow you outside. I am responsible for you and the villager's safety until you're back with your people." Asterix said, his voice trembled a bit. He had started to count the Roman as a friend. Saying goodbye was hard for him too, not only Blanche.

"Lead him outside, Asterix!" Vitalstatistix' voice thundered. "Let's get rid of him!"

Asterix nodded. "Alright, chief." He motioned to Silenceus to make him go to the gate.

"Wait!" a female voice cut through the air.

Everyone turned their attention to the young woman, running through the crowd barefooted. The villagers gasped as she threw herself towards the roman centurion, clinging to him like there was no tomorrow.

"I love you, Silenceus…" she sobbed, grabbing his face with both hands and kissed him passionately right in front of all the villagers. They all gasped in disbelief.

"Disgraceful whore!" someone shouted.

Blanche ignored them all, she hugged Silenceus close while crying violently. He hugged her back, they both knew that the villagers already had understood and judged them, they didn't have to hide it now these last seconds.

"Ahem!" Vitalstatistix cleared his throat to catch their attention. "Time to leave, Roman!"

Blanche held Silenceus hard, not wanting to let go, but Impedimenta and Bacteria pulled her away. She sank down in her knees, crying as she saw Asterix and Silenceus open the gates and walk outside. The sound of the gate closing behind them was like thunder in her ears. Impedimenta were sitting on the ground with her, holding her arms around her, comforting her like a child.

The other villagers looked at her in disgust as they walked away from the scene. There was nothing more to see, Blanche was weighed on their morality-weight… and found too light. She was nothing to them anymore, she was a lost case, an outcast. None of them would ever go near her again.

Blanche had no idea of how long she sat there in the town square, with Impedimenta's arms around her. Time had stopped the very moment Asterix came back through the gates and she heard the roman legion march away.

The sun went down, her knees were aching. Her eyes were sore, like someone had blown sand into them. All she wanted was to sleep. Sleep and never wake up again.

Asterix and Impedimenta stood up, reaching her a hand.

"Come, Blanche. It's almost night, let's go inside."

Like she was a walking dead, she took their hands and allowed them to lead her to her house. Her life would never be the same again. All because of a wounded Roman centurion, who by chance was dumped in their village…

How strange life could be, she pondered as she looked up at the moon appearing over her house. How helpless we humans are against love… Love, the strongest and weakest weapon on earth…

The end.

Ok ok… I promise; there will be a sequel. It just felt right to end this here… I can't promise that Blanche and Silenceus will meet again, but we're going to follow Silenceus' POV during the "at the Olympic Games" movie. Maybe we'll take a tour to the village now and then to see how everyone is doing, but the main focus will be the Olympic games.


End file.
